Apparatus for maintaining the level in glass tanks



April 13, 1926.

J. S. GREGORIU S APPARATUS vFOR MAINTAININGjTJ-IE LEVEL IN GLASS TANKS 1924 '2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Original Filed Dec.

' INVENTOR April 13 1926. 1,580,135

- I j I J. SQGREGORIUS APPARATUS FOR. MAINTAINING THE LEVEL YIN GLASS TANKS d g Filed Dec. "3. 24 12 SheetS -Sh eet 2 ?atented Apr. 13', 1926. v

- UNITED STATES To all whom it may concern.

JOSEPH S. GREGORIUS, OF MOUNT VERNON, OHIO, ASSIGNOR TO PITTSBURGH PLATE GLASS COMPANY, A CORPORATION OF PENNSYLVANIA.

APPARATUS non MAINTAINING THE LEVEL IN GLASS TANKS."

Application filed December 3, 1924, Serial No. 753,639. Renewed October 16, 1925.

Be it known that I, J OSEPH S. Gnueonrus,

a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Mount Vernon, in the county of Knox and State of Ohio, have made a newl and useful invention in Improvements in an Apparatus for Maintaining the Level in Glass Tanks, of which the following is a specification.

The invention relates to apparatus for use with glass melting tanks for assisting in the maintenance of the glass level at a constant point. .This maintenance of thelevel is of particular Importance in those cases in which a continuous ribbon or sheet of glass is drawn from the'tank and in which the,

level of the clay work adjacent the line of generation of the sheet must bear a definite relation to the level of the glass. This is also important in those cases in which a variation of the level of the glass causes a variations in the amount of heat supplied to the extension from which the drawing occurs, as it is desirable to maintain constant temperature conditions in such extension. Because of the heatconditions in a regenerator melting tank, it is a very diflicult matter to'determine; the level of the glass in the furnace by means of marks on the inner face of one of the walls, as such marks become obliterated andhave no sharp definition at any time when observed from the distance required by the severe heat conditions. The

resent invention is designed to provide a reliable means for determining with exactness and without. difliculty or inconvenience the exact level of the glass at any time One I sighting device.

tudinal section through I line'V-.V of Fig. 1.

use. Fig. 21s a horizontal plane sl1ow1ng. the.

embodiment of the invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings wherein:

Figure 1 is apartial section and partlal diagrammatic cross sectional view in a 7 drawing tank with the apparatus in position of use. Fig. 3 is a rear elevationof the Fig. 4 is a vertical longi- And Fig. 5 is a detail sectional view Briefly stated, the apparatus comprises'a float located in the glass-batch in position side wall of the tank, and a sighting device h plate 11 is provided with three adgusting to be observed through an opening in the located outside the tank, by means of whic the sighting device.

on the carrying a pair of spaced sighting wires, and

a scale past which the line of sight extends,

so that the observer in lining up the two wlres witha mark upon the float can also see the scale and in this way determine the vertical position of .the float. In so far as the scale is concerned, it is not necessary to know the height of the line of sight with respect to any fixed point, but only to have a measuring element which will indicate the relative vertical position of the float. Once the proper level of glass has beendetermined In connection with the corresponding point upon the scale ofthe line of sight, it is only necessary that this point should be marked upon the'scale and the level of the glass adjusted-so that the float always rests at the same level. r. V

A sighting tube is preierably employed w th the device having in one end a colored glass to protect the eye of the observer from the intense light and heat, but this is a refinement which might be dispensed with.

-. Referring now to the drawings, 1 is a melting tank; 2 is a forehearth from which the glass may be drawn or removed in any desired way; and 3 is a floater or skimmer of refractory material lying between the two portions of the tank; 4 is an opening through the side wall of the tank through which the floater is positioned; and 5 is afloat also of The relation of the float 5 to the opening.

4 and the sighting device, will be seen by reference torFig. 1, the float preferably being provided with acolumn 6, whose upper edge 7 acts'as an indicator for gauging the I vertical'positionof the float when used in connection with the sighting device.

' The sighting device comprisesabase 8, having a hollow vertical standard 9, m which is slidably mounted the tube 10, carying at its upper end the plate 11. This plate is secured to the tube 10 by means of abolt 12, beneath which is a washer 13. The tube is adjusted vertically by-means of a nut 14"; threaded onto the stem and resting upon the top of the standard 9. The

Screws forleveling up the plate 14, which carries the sighting device. Two of these screws 15, 15 are at the forward end of the plate 11, while the third one 16 is located at the rear end of' the plate. They are threaded into bosses 17 on the under side of the plate 14 and are swivelled in the plate 11 by means of collars 18 which are secured to the stems of the screws by means of pins. Mounted upon the plate 14 are two pairs of uprights 19 and 20, such uprights carrying the pairs of screws 21 and 22. Between these pairs of screws extend the slghting wires 23 and 24. These wires are preferably secured to the screws as indicated in detail in Fig. 5, the end of the wire being drawn laterally through the opening 25 in the hollow stem of the screw, and the screw being secured in position after the wire is tightened byme'ans of a lock nut 26. These two wires determine the line of s1ght'27 (Fig. 1) and this line of sight is made honzontal 1n both directions by means of the pairs of levels 28 and 29.

At the rear end of the plate 14 is a third upright 30, which carries the sighting tube 31. The sighting tube is provided with the threaded stem 32 which extends through the slot in the upright 30 and is engaged by the clamping nut 33. By this means the tube.

maybe adjusted vertically and also tilted, until the line of sight is in line with the observation opening at the rear end of the tube. The construction of the tube is shown in Fig. 4. A. piece of colored glass 34 is clamped against the front end of the tube by means of a screw cap 35, while the rear ,end is provided with a ca 36, having the sighting opening 37 theret rough. Mounted adjacent the line of sight is the scale 38, such scale being secured to the standard 9, and being closely adjacent to the line or sight 2?, so that when the line of sight is in allgnment with the indicating plane 7 on the float, the position of such line of sight can be read upon the scale. 7

Having once determined the proper elevation of the line of sight, as indicated by the scale, it is eas to determine the level of the glass in t e tank by noting how much above or how much below the indicating flange has moved with respect to the point which has been determined upon the scale. By the use of this apparatus, the level of the glass may be determined without difliculty at any time and may be depended upon within a small fraction of an inch, perhaps g nd or th of an inch, which is suflicient for all practical purposes, batch being fed into the furnace at a suflicient rate to always keep the level of the glass at the point which has been determined upon as the most expedient for operation.

As indicated in Figs. 1 and 2, the float 5 is mounted in one of the cored out openings through the skimmer 3, so that it is free to move up and down but is prevented from moving from its position adjacent the observation 4. They opening 4 is the one through which the skimmer 3 is inserted into the furnace, such opening being partially filled up after the skimmer is positioned, but it will be understood that an observation at some other point through one ofthe furnace walls might be used and that the float might be located in some other part. of the furnace. Also that the invention might be applied to any form of glass furnace in which it is desirable to maintain a constant level in the tank. In some cases the'float is located in the tank behind the skimmer bar.

What I claim is:

1. The combination with a glass furnace, having an observation opening in one of its walls, of a float or refractory material in position to be observed through said opening, a sighting device on the outer side of said wall in line with said opening, and

means for determining the vertical position of the line of sight of such sighting device.

2. The combination with a glass furnace, having an observation opening in one of its walls, of a float of refractory material in position to beobserved through said opening, a sighting device on the outer side of said'wall in line with said opening, leveling means therefor, and means for determining the vertical position of the line of sight of such sighting device. 4

3. The combination with a glass furnace, having an observation opening in one of its walls, of a float of refractory material in position to be observed through said openinggza sighting device on the outer side ofsaid wall in line with said opening, leveling means therefor, means for adjusting said device vertically, and means for determining the vertical positionof the line of sight of such sighting device.- a

4. The combination with a glass furnace, having an observation opening in one of its walls, of a float of refractory material in position to be observed through said opening, a sighting device on the outer" side of said wall in line with said openin and a vertical scale, whose position isnixed adjacent the line of sight of such sighting device in such position that its elevation may beseen by the operator when making his observation of the float.

5. The combination with a glass furnace, having an observation openingin one of its walls, of a float of refractory material,

when making his observation of the 'float.

6. The combination with a glass tank having a fixed fioateror skimmer therein of refractory material with :an opening extending vertically therethrough and also havingin its Wall an observation opening above thesurface of the glass and adjacent such flOltGIQ Of a float of refractory material lying in said opening in top theieof, a sightside of said wall in and means for deand extending above the ing device on the outer line with said opening,

termining the vertical position of the line of sight of such sighting device.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto subscribed my name this 18th day of'November, 1926 JOSEPH S. GREGQRIUS. 

